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The Nationals were 36 – 25 in the games that Denard Span appeared in for the 2015 year. He is going to help the Giants offense as a legitimate leadoff man in 2016 and can play all 3 positions in the Outfield. They have 3 decent starting players beyond the grass, and should be able to fill all 162 games with Belt and Blanco also being on the depth chart out there.

I absolutely love the Giants Free Agent Signing of Denard Span. This is a club that has extreme depth in all 3 OF positions now, and Span has worked the role of a Leadoff man brilliantly in the last several years.

Yes between he, Hunter Pence and Angel Pagan they have spent time on the sick bay over the last few years, but when you add that Brandon Belt could play LF, or Gregor Blanco who filled in admirably well in 2015, than you see that the roster just became stronger.

It is for these reasons alone I have finally taken the +900 odd off as one of my worst picks on the betsheet. This signing definitely tips the scales back in San Frans favor over the Dodgers.

The 1 – 8 lineup looks nice with Span, Joe Panik, Buster Posey, Hunter Pence, Brandon Belt, Matt Duffy, Brandon Crawford and Angel Pagan all capable MLB Starter. I could see this squad leading the Batting Average in the Majors in the coming year.

Back to Back AL pennants and this years World Series Winners. They are the biggest favorite to win their respective division so far on the board. The KC franchise has most of the core nucleus all heading for Free Agency before the 2018 season. If I were a fan of this club – I would be okay with the team rebuilding after this, but for now to throw all chips in and try to cash in on a chance for a small dynasty. Dayton Moore and the Brass should use any one of their Minor League Players to acquire the next piece or 2 to make that happen in 2016 and 2017.

The Royals are back to back AL Pennant winners and the reigning World Series Champions right now. Furthermore, they are playing in the most winnable Division in the Majors right now.

Kansas City were the 1st real small market club to win the World Series since the 2003 Marlins club took home the Fall Classic that year.

Just like the 2014 winter, the club will sustain losses between the end of the year to Spring Training the following year.

The door is not closed on Alex Gordon yet, however I don’t think it is in the clubs best interest to pay a 9 figure salary to a guy who is already 30.

KC has already seen Ben Zobrist sign with the Cubs, Johnny Cueto with the Giants, and Greg Holland will not pitch at all in the 2016 season with Tommy John Surgery recovery, and certainly not for the Royals.

Dayton Moore has done a decent job acquiring talent though. The team resigned Starter Chris Young, and they added one time Royals Closer Joakim Soria.

Kris Bryant is about as sure of a prospect there has been in the last 5 years. Will the Cubs let him start the year in 2015, or will they send him down until the end of April to save service time. All you need to know about the franchises desire to win it all this campaign may be based on this decision. The young slugger had 40 HRs in the Minor League’s last year.

Top 100 Prospects

1-30

These are my top 100 prospects in baseball. There is a lot of talent in the minor leagues right now across almost all levels. Yoan Moncada signed after I wrote this but he would slot in the 8th slot right ahead of Joey Gallo and I do believe Moncada will be a stud.

1. Kris Bryant 3B CHC – He will hit for power and hit for a high average at what is an underrated position. He was the 2nd overall pick in 2013 and has the looks of a perennial all star.

2. Carlos Correa SS Hou- He was having a very nice season at the best hitters park in the minors in Lancaster before he broke his leg. I think he can stay at SS with almost all five tools with power rapidly emerging. He’s the future face of the Astros.

3. Corey Seager SS LAD- There are people who think he may get too big for SS and have to transfer to 3B but I think he has much more value at SS and can stick there for at least a few years. He should have an elite bat with plus plus power. Possibly the next Troy Tulowitzki with a slightly worse glove.

Kansas City finally lived up to their expectations, and far exceeded beyond that, being just one swing away from calling themselves World Championships. With the success the team had, it also creates pay raises, roster turnover, and tough decisions from the brass on who to replace the outgoing cast. Dayton Moore must be aggressive with some of the changes, and realize this core group of players have about a 2 – 3 year window to win before everyone becomes too expensive. The time to strike is still now!

Why The Royals Can’t Sit Back After 2014 AL Pennant

First congrats to the San Fransisco Giants organization for winning a 3rd championship in 5 years!

Now for the losers who captured Americas heart, and why the Royals can’t sit back and do nothing all offseason.

Frequently after a team wins a championship (for almost any sport) and has that breakthrough season that team tends to try and retain its team from last year while making no additions.

Save for LeBrons Miami heat we haven’t had a team repeat in any sport since the 2004 Patriots and not in baseball since the 2000 Yankees.

Lets not forget that while the Royals did eventually get to game 7 of the World Series they barely got the wild card clinching the spot a couple games above the Mariners and winning that game late.

Here are recent examples of Championship teams who really made very few additions and flopped or performed less than expected the next year.

The 2013 Red Sox who basically retained the same team and suffered from injuries and substandard performance from players like Clay Buchholz and David Ortiz.

The biggest example might be the 2010 and 2012 San Francisco Giants who just retained their teams while making no additions and ended up making frantic moves such as trading for Carlos Beltran at the deadline to fill the holes.

The Cubs at tied for 1st in having 5 players in our top 50 prospect list (3 in the top 12), and are stockpiling an impressive arsenal of young talent at the Minor League Level, and some players have already seeped into the Major Leagues. If most of these guys pan out, the Cubs will be a force to be reckoned with in the not too distant future!

Top 100 Prospects (1 – 50)

To make this list you must be able to meet rookie eligibility. To be eligible for a list, a player must have rookie eligibility.

To qualify for rookie status, a player must not have exceeded 130 at-bats or 50 innings pitched in the Major Leagues, or accumulated more than 45 days on the active roster of a Major League club or clubs during the 25-player limit period, excluding time on the disabled list or in military service.

This list doesn’t include players in the 2014 Draft nor the 2014 international signing period.

Myers ascended onto the PCL scene in the year 2012 and ripped out 24 HRs in just 99 Games at Omaha. The Royals had 7 years to look forward to from the #1 Ranked Offensive Player ranked in the Minor Leagues. Instead, they rolled the dice on the 2013 – and 2014 seasons. While the deal has initially worked out for both clubs, if Kansas City can extend Shields for beyond the 2014 – and then compete for that duration with him pitching well, it will look so much better than if Shields would leave following the 2014 season. Anyone directly involved with KC would likely cringe at the mere mention of the trade in the future, should a playoff spot not be obtained for sacrificing this top prospect.

Royals Top 10 Prospects

We are in that black hole for baseball fans.

Still a month and a half until pitchers and catchers report, still a month or so before the big publications release their organizational prospect lists, and the flood of free agency and trades have stopped.

Heck, I have taken to late night Australian Baseball League games to get my baseball fix, and happened to catch one of the better brawls I have seen in a while.

Shields was brought into do a job (via trade) in the 2013 year, and he did just that, leading the American League In Innings Pitched, Game Starts – and Batters Faced – en route to a 13 – 9 year, with a 3.15 ERA. The Royals have him for an exercised $12.5 MIL Team Option in 2014, but the ALL – Star Pitcher has expressed interest in signing an extension long – term. My question is – why are they not backing up the Brinks truck right now?

I have been writing for this fine website for a few weeks now. I must say that I have been bored with my bleeping mind since the World Series – from lack of excitement.

One of my 1st articles a few weeks back, also addressed the Kansas City Royals need to go for it in 2014. It is not time to sit back any longer. At the end of this post, I will provide a link to read that post too.

I was commuting to my business last week, and I heard that James Shields likes it in KC – and would be willing to stay long-term if possible.

Okay, so why aren’t David Glass and Dayton Moore at Shields house right now, hammering away on an extension deal?

Eric Hosmer, Mike Moustakas, Alex Gordon, Lorenzo Cain, Alcides Escobar, Billy Butler are part of a young core of talent that could really all flourish at the same time. The franchise had added Veteran Starting Pitching this year and look as strong as ever to end the 28 year Playoff Drought. The management and ownership has spent more money than any Royals team in club history. The will probably battle with the Detroit Tigers all season long for the AL Central Division.

You guys are all in for a treat. Jeff Kleiner recently contacted me about a partnership merge for the website. He has developed a site (prosportsrosters.com) that covers all organizational affiliates in the Minors for all of the Major League Baseball Clubs. We are going to combine efforts to bring you the best look at salaries, current 25 Man Player Rosters and Depth Charts for all 30 teams.

Jeff is going to provide the documents in form of spreadsheets and I am going to accompany the posts with deep analysis of what the numbers tell us from my perspective. If you can’t wait for all of my assessments for each club, go and visit Jeff’s website over at http://www.prosportsrosters.com.

In Speaking with Jeff, he is one of the more passionate fans I have come across towards the game of baseball. He spends enough time in updating his MLB Facts for it to be a Full-Time Job. So after the usual Video Clip and READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY button, you will find some serious &*!@?!#!

Jeff updates this page below on a daily basis. After you click on it….Bookmark it. There is a 3 year salary forecast and stats not listed here on this page.

For a Full 3 year Salary Outlook plus last years Stats for every player in the Royals Organization clickhere

Before I show you my top 100 prospects – I want to get you familiar with my grading tactics and styles and what I value most. All prospects have ceilings and very few players reach that ceiling. First lets go through the tools of what I personally value most and where.

Tools:

Bat:1 Power:2 Speed:3 Glove:4 Arm:5 Makeup:?

Those are the 5(6) tools that scouts use and the scale goes from 20-80. 80 being HOF rare like Giancarlo Stanton Power and 20 being absolutely terrible like Bengie Molina has 20 speed. Most people reading this will probably have more than 20 speed so that’s how pathetic it is.

Bryan Sheehan (MLB Writer): For those who may not know, the MLB’s first-year-player draft starts June 4th. While there may not be a huge name like Bryce Harper or Stephen Strasburg to create excessive buzz, this year’s draft should be interesting. The first overall pick belongs to the 2011 worst Houston Astros, who surprisingly have one of the shallowest farm systems in baseball. Though the Hunter Pence trade brought in their number one and two prospects, Jarred Cosart and Jonathan Singleton, respectively, the organization is lacking in prospect depth overall. Picking behind the ‘Stros are the Minnesota Twins, with the Mariners and Orioles following. Predicting a draft, especially where there is no clear-cut “number one” prospect is difficult, to say the least. Teams aren’t drafting to fill immediate needs, so much as to bolster a weak area in their organization. For example: it may seem logical for the Phillies to draft a power-hitting first baseman with the 40th pick since Ryan Howard is injured, but really a 2012 draftee wouldn’t be MLB ready for a few years and therefore irrelevant to Howard’s injury. Plus with the changes in this year’s draft as to salaries, teams will no longer have “recommended slots” to play with. Translation: signability will play a bigger part in this year’s draft than ever before. With that being said, here are my predictions for the first ten names to be called on Monday.

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